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Greece Currency
Many centuries later, after the creation of the Modern Greek state, the first governor of Greece Ioannis Kapodistrias introduced the phoenix as the currency of Greece, subdivided in 100 lepta (cents). The phoenix was meant to remind of the mythical bird, symbolizing the rebirth of Greece after centuries of enslavement. The phoenix replaced the Turkish kurus that was in use up to that point. However, in 1832, when Otto was appointed King of Greece, the drachma was reintroduced, consisting of 100 lepta as well.
During the German occupation of Greece, the looting of the treasury and hyperinflation resulted in the creation of 100 billion drachma notes. In 1944, after the liberation of the country, the second drachma replaced the old bank notes at a rate of 50 billion to 1. However, the new currency also suffered from high inflation, causing the government to join the Bretton Woods system in 1953 and introduce the third drachma at a rate of 1000 old drachmas to 1. The drachma was eventually replaced on 1 January 2002, when Greece joined the European Monetary Union, officially adopting the euro as its currency. The Greek coins of the Euro draw their theme from the history of the country; the coins for 0.01, 0.02 and 0.05 depict a 5th century BC trireme, a 19th century corvette and a modern tanker. The 0.10, 0.20 and 0.50 coins depicted three of the most important figures in recent Greek history, Rigas Feraios, Ioannis Kapodistrias and Eleftherios Venizelos. Finally, the 1 euro coin has the depiction of a tetradrachm of Ancient Athens, while the 2 euro coin shows the abduction of Europa by Zeus, who was transformed in a bull.
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